Today’s visit to the Ellenshaw Museum takes us to the wing of Peter’s talented son Harrison.  Harrison did not have the longevity with the Disney organization that his father did, but his impact may have been even more prominent.  After all, he left Disney to work on a small independent film called STAR WARS.  Harrison continued the matte processes perfected by his father but was even more creative in the design of other unique special effects.  And his occasional return to the Disney studio was for such landmark visual films as THE BLACK HOLE, TRON and DICK TRACY. 

Now mattes were even more interactive, including movement previously unavailable in a static painting.  In one of the first major mattes of Dick Tracy we travel across a massive cityscape featuring moving trains and blinking lights.  Harrison even got his father involved with Dick Tracy by having him dabble on the huge twenty plus foot scene.

In an interesting homage to Harrison, who creates a perfectly counterfeited world, a counterfeiter uses a stolen check to mimic Dick Tracy’s signature and writing style…  The Payee?

Harrison’s Hardware

You can check out more exhibits by searching for “Ellenshaw”